home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- TRANSPOLAR SKITREK PROGRESS REPORT #18: May 28, 1988
-
- Prepared by Rich Ensign, N8IWJ, AMSAT Science Education Advisor
- For Use With The AMSAT Teachers Guide
- "Exploring The High Arctic From Your Classroom"
-
-
- The Amateur Radio supported Transpolar Skitrek Expedition moved toward a
- close last week as the skiers reached a point just 71 km away from the
- Canadian shore on Saturday, May 28th. They will be making landfall at Ward
- Hunt Island which has a latitude of 83 degrees 6 minutes North. A 10 km wide
- lead awaits them in the next few days which they will cross in large
- inflatable rafts brought by Twin Otter aircraft from Resolute Bay. The rafts
- the skiers have carried with them are small, single person units, that are
- impractical to use on large bodies of water such as the lead the skiers face.
- The Soviet skiers have requested and will receive a final resupply just
- before crossing the lead.
-
- The weather and ice conditions of late have made for slow progress. Fog,
- rough ice with water on it, pressure ridges and many small open leads have
- limited the skiers movement to about 22 km per day. Moderating temperatures
- (between -10 and -6 Celsius) are causing much of the ice problems along with
- a rapid (as much as 12 km/day) southward drift of the ice pack. If progress
- continues at the current rate, and the large lead does not slow them down,
- the skiers should make Ward Hunt Island between June 1st and 3rd.
-
- The Soviet Ice Island NP-28 has not experienced any further damage due to
- ice fracturing since the loss of communications gear last week. Barry
- Garratt, 4K0DX/VE3CDX planned to leave the island May 29th and is returning
- to Canada via the Soviet Union. The Royal Canadian Air Force has joined the
- skitrek communications team with their amateur station VE8RCS located at
- Alert on Ellesmere Island.
-
- * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
-
- A special supplement to this report will be issued on Tuesday, May 31st,
- prior to the Wednesday (UTC) North America Nets. Skitrek Report #19 will be
- issued on the day the trek ends.
-
-
- TRANSPOLAR SKITREK / PROJECT NORDSKI COMM - SKI TEAM POSITION LOG
- -----------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Daily reports are made by the team to communications support stations on
- Sredniy Island, USSR, Russian ice station North Pole 28 and Resolute Bay,
- Canada via amateur radio. These reports are relayed south at 1500z in
- the 20m amateur radio band on 14.121mHz USB. Reports are automatically
- taped at W0RPK and reduced to daily information notes for continuing logs.
-
-
- DAY/TIM UTC LATITUDE LONGITUDE REMARKS
- ----------- --------- ---------- -------------------------------------------
- 30May 10:58 83d24.7mN 74d39.0mW -14dC Very rough going very windy 10km
- 29May 10:48 83d33.6mN 74d27.3mW -6dC Good ice light wind 26km
- 28May 11:34 83d47.8mN 74d40.2mW -6dC Very rough ice 23km
- 27May 11:09 84d00.4mN 74d35.2mW -6dC Rough ice and foggy 99.9km to go 22km
- 26May 11:20 84d16.3mN 75d17.2mW -6dC Rough ice but a little sun 22km
- 25May 11:50 84d28.2mN 75d31.5mW -7dC Planning for big lead near land 22km
- 24May 13:48 84d40.2mN 75d47.4mW Wind north 30km/h good ice 35km
- 23May 10:12 84d59.4mN 77d19.2mW -7dC Lots of water on ice 197km to go 28km
- 22May 10:22 85d15.8mN 77d04.9mW -8dC Rough ice-problem with lead 24km
- 21May 11:42 85d28.2mN 77d09.5mW -10dC 24km
- 20May 10:44 85d41.7mN 76d54.8mW -9dC 273km remaining to go 27km
- 19May 11:37 85d56.1mN 77d06.4mW -11dC 300km remaining 20km
- 18May 10:17 86d06.4mN 77d25.1mW
- 17May 11:00 86d21.3mN 76d29 mW Trek now underway again
- 16May 11:02 86d37.3mN 75d48.4mW Drift movement only
- 15May 10:37 86d36.0mN 75d39.2mW Drift movement only
- 14May 11:47 86d37.5mN 75d19.9mW Resupply successful - Drift movement only
- 13May No movement - stopped for resupply aircraft - 1st attempt failed
- 12May 12:12 86d39.7mN 75d38.6mW Approximately 400km from finish 10km
- 11May 10:28 86d44.7mN 77d32.1mW Approximately 358km from pole 22km
- 10May 11:36 86d56.6mN 79d20.3mW
- 09May No report available
- 08May 10:48 87d25.4mN 81d13.9mW
- 07May 11:54 87d43.5mN 81d31.5mW
- 06May No position report
- 05May 11:41z 88d14.4mN 81d13.6mW
- 04May 10:15 88d31.7mN 81d07.3mW -5dC Open water could become a prob 28km
- 03May 11:58 88d46.6mN 81d41.8mW
- 02May 11:29 89d05.6mN 86d03.0mW
- 01May 11:49 89d18.6mN 90d17.4mW -10dC wind 25km/h vis 4km light snow 36km
- 30Apr 10:32 89d37.9mN 94d29.8mW
- 29Apr 10:30 89d48.2mN 106d55.0mW
- 28Apr 11:21 89d51.1mN 109d53.9mW
- 27Apr 90d00.0mN Official Canadian/Russian meeting
- 26Apr 16:00 90d00.0mN The North Pole
- 25Apr 10:12 89d56.6mN 147d18.8mE 6km to pole 22km
- 24Apr 11:13 89d46.4mN 107d25.7mE -25dC 24km to the pole 28km
- 23Apr 89d30.9mN 87d54.9mE -20dC 46km to pole ETA 25Apr 18km
- 22Apr 12:39 89d21.2mN 80d26.2mE -20dC 64km to pole 21km
- 21Apr 11:33 89d11.9mN 89d20.6mE -22dC Wind NE 43kts bad conditions 20km
- 20Apr 11:05 89d00.0mN 95d42.8mE -30dC Now estimating pole on 25Apr 25km
- 19Apr 11:58 88d45.8mN 94d31.6mE -35dC 140km to pole 27km
- 18Apr 11:10 88d33.9mN 91d47.9mE -30dC 27km
- 17Apr 11:00 88d20.3mN 91d28.9mE -32dC 185km to pole 25km
- 16Apr 10:30 88d08.9mN 90d44.6mE Movement due only to ice drift
- 15Apr 10:35 88d10.7mN 91d48.2mE Movement due only to ice drift
- 14Apr 11:45 88d11.4mN 95d09.9mE Movement due only to ice drift
- 13Apr 88d11.4mN 97d07.0mE Air drop coordinates
- 13Apr 10:42 88d10.4mN 96d45.2mE Start of trek before air drop 15km
- 12Apr 10:49 88d02.7mN 95d34.9mE -30dC 235km to pole 37km
- 11Apr 12:06 87d42.4mN 94d55.7mE -30dC Estimating pole April 24-26 18km
- 10Apr 11:37 87d32.6mN 93d29.5mE -30dC 272km to the pole everything ok 34km
- 09Apr 10:38 87d14.2mN 91d48.4mE
- 08Apr 11:55 87d00.2mN 91d03.5mE -28dC Best single day progress 37km
- 07Apr 10:08 86d40.6mN 92d38.6mE -28dC 600km total 369km to the pole 26km
- 06Apr 10:57 86d26.3mN 93d18.3mE -40dC Lots of ice everybody ok 27km
- 05Apr 11:01 86d12.4mN 92d07.2mE 421km to go to the pole 22km
- 04Apr 10:39 86d00.7mN 91d44.5mE -37dC 22km
- 03Apr 11:49 85d48.8mN 92d20.5mE -36dC Everybody ok
- 02Apr No position report
- 01Apr 11:12 85d23.2mN 93d40.0mE -37dC Slept in before starting 8km
- 31Mar No change <Stopped at drop point for R&R >
- 30Mar No change <and experiments >
- 29Mar 11:38 85d18.9mN 94d55.3mE -35dC 2nd air drop a success - stopped 24km
- 28Mar 10:26 85d07.1mN 95d17.4mE -38dC Open water a problem 12km
- 27Mar 10:48 85d00.1mN 95d31.5mE -45dC clear wind light good ice 31km
- 26Mar 12:15 84d43.1mN 95d50.5mE -42dC Clear wind NW 2-3mps 2days prog32.4km
- 25Mar No position report
- 24Mar 13:00 84d25.6mN 95d58.2mE -37dC wind 40km/hr snowstorm 0km
- 23Mar 13:00 84d28.9mN 96d12.4mE -33dC Strong head winds 20-40km/hr 15km
- 22Mar 13:02 84d19.0mN 97d02.9mE Everything good ice, temp, progress 28km
- 21Mar 13:00 84d03.5mN 97d40.4mE -39dC ice excellent few leads&hummocks 21km
- 20Mar 11:40 83d51.8mN 97d27.4mE -36dC wind 1-2mps good ice & spirits 26km
- 18Mar 13:00 83d37.9mN 97d21.7mE -31dC no wind or open water good cond 22km
- 17Mar 13:00 83d11.7mN 97d26.6mE -35dC SE wind 3-5meters/sec 24km
- 16Mar <1st air drop successful on 14MAR >
- 15Mar 13:00 82d58.7mN 97d28.9mE <Team built igloo and stayed till >
- 14Mar <17Mar for R&R and experiments >
- 13Mar 11:16 82d52.2mN 97d19.8mE -42dC wind 3-4meters/sec 24km
- 12Mar No position report 25km
- 11Mar 11:36 82d28.8mN 97d13.0mE
- 10MAR 11:58 82d16.9mN 97d24.6mE -45dC 20km
- 09Mar 12:30 82d09.3mN 97d47.0mE -30dC 12km
- 08Mar No position report 20km
- 07Mar 12:23 81d56.6mN 97d15.1mE 17km
- 06Mar No significant progress - Open water - Very windy - camped early 0km
- 05Mar 12:44 81d35.8mN 96d52.4mE -21dC Snow wind 33meters/sec 14km
- 04Mar 11:13 81d32.3mN 97d 0.0mE -28dC 20km
- 03Mar 11:24 81d21.2mN 96d12.8mE 7km
- 03Mar 07:31 81d15.0mN 95d50.0mE Starting point on Cape Arktichesky